49 ? mastitis - not breastfeeding

[Wren77]

Just as it says in the title! My breast became painful on Thursday eve, still painful now, red patch (about a quarter of breast roughly) below my nipple and warmer than the other one. Do I wait it out or call 111 - just with it being a bank holiday? I'm not in agony it's just a little uncomfortable/ painful to touch. WWYD? Thanks 👍

I got mastitis aged 15. My breast quickly became very swollen and red and got to the touch and I felt quite poorly with it so i would get it seen asap and get antibiotics before it gets too bad

Thank you. Will give them a call

I’ve had mastitis twice and I’ve never breastfed. Anyone can get it at any age, it’s just more likely if you are breastfeeding. You probably need some antibiotics to clear it.

Yep. Randomly happened to me too. I left it for a few days and ended up with abscess (this has happened before when breast feeding so I should have known better)
Get it treated today x

Did you get sorted OP?

Oh I have this - see my thread on poor medical experience/delaying treatment.
Not saying it's the same but one boob has a very hard section and slowly swelled up, was painful/tender, pain round my shoulders and neck.
I've been on antibiotics for almost a week and it's getting better, although the hard centre is still there. Google breast infection perimenopause and there's a name for it - see if it's similar?

Thank you I will! Got some antibiotics from our of hours Dr on sunday and a referral to the breast clinic for a mammogram to rule out anything sinister. Hope you feel better soon 💐

Thank you, glad you got the antibiotics.

I got mastitis for the first time when I was 48 and had the 2 week referral to breast clinic. I had a mammogram and core biopsy done and it was diagnosed as duct ectasia and that caused the mastitis. I had another attack a year later which turned into a breast abscess but no problems since and that was a few years ago now.
Hopefully antibiotics will kick in and clear it up.

@DeerWatch do you mind sharing what the treatment for the abscess was? I still have some lumpy parts left that are tender after a week on antibiotics

Normally the abscesses are drawn out with a syringe. Then antibiotics.
But I've had antibiotics work on their own

I've had cysts drained, think an abscess would be super painful being drained?

Abcess not painful when drained, but the anaesthetic injection is not comfortable. Either way better out than in ! I waited too long to see a gp with mastitis, really annoyed at myself, it needs to be looked at asap, or you risk abcess.

Best of luck OP.
I had this, it was DCIS, cancer stage 0.
bloody lucky to have caught it so early. Without the mastitis I would never have known.